Obama spared in the first round of Blago indictments.
Blagojevich, 5 Associates Indicted
Grand Jury Charges Former Illinois Governor With Wide-Ranging Corruption Scheme
APRIL 3, 2009, 2:57 A.M. ET
By DOUGLAS BELKIN and DAVID KESMODEL
CHICAGO -- Even before he took office six years ago, former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, his brother and a circle of associates conspired to use the governor's office to enrich themselves at the expense of taxpayers and "honest government," a federal grand jury indictment charged Thursday.
The 75-page, 19-count indictment charged Mr. Blagojevich, 52 years old, Robert Blagojevich, 53, two of the ex-governor's former aides and two business associates with a variety of felonies, including allegations the former governor schemed to auction off the U.S. Senate seat vacated by President Barack Obama.
Prosecutors say the six men named in the indictment sought to profit from the governor's authority to award money and jobs in construction, legal work, consulting and investments.
Mr. Blagojevich, a Democrat, was charged with 16 felony counts, among them: racketeering conspiracy, wire fraud, extortion conspiracy and lying to federal agents. He has denied any wrongdoing. On Thursday Mr. Blagojevich was vacationing with his family in Florida and released this statement: "I'm saddened and hurt but I am not surprised by the indictment. I am innocent. I now will fight in the courts to clear my name. I would ask the good people of Illinois to wait for the trial and afford me the presumption of innocence that they would give to all their friends and neighbors."
No arraignment dates have been set.
The political career of Mr. Blagojevich began to unravel at 6 a.m. on Dec. 9 when agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation arrested him at his home on Chicago's north side. Later that morning, U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald charged him with trying to trade Mr. Obama's former Senate seat for a high-paying job or key political appointment, as well as conspiring to sign bills and award contracts in exchange for campaign contributions.
An affidavit released that afternoon revealed that authorities had wiretapped Mr. Blagojevich's home and campaign office. Among the secretly recorded conversations were several expletive-laced tirades exchanged with his wife Patti Blagojevich. Mrs. Blagojevich has not been indicted.
In one conversation recorded the day after Obama's November 4 win, Mr. Blagojevich told an unnamed advisor: "I've got this thing and it's [expletive] golden, and, uh, uh, I'm just not giving it up for [expletive] nothing. I'm not gonna do it. And, and I can always use it." the government affidavit said,
The indictment filed Thursday included several new allegations. Prosecutors, for example, allege that before taking office in 2003, Mr. Blagojevich and several associates agreed they would use the governor's office for financial gain. One of those men was Mr. Blagojevich's first gubernatorial chief of staff Alonzo Monk, who was also indicted Thursday. The men planned to divide the illegal proceeds after Mr. Blagojevich left office, according to the indictment.
Authorities charged that Mr. Blagojevich and his associates schemed to direct business to a company involved in refinancing billions of dollars of state pension bonds in exchange for kickbacks.
Prosecutors also allege Mr. Blagojevich tried to extort a U.S. congressman, whose name is not listed in the court document, for campaign contributions by delaying a $2 million state grant to a public school in the congressman's district. The indictment also claimed that OBama's benefactor Antoin "Tony" Rezko, an associate of the former governor who has been convicted on federal charges, steered a $14,396 real estate commission to Mrs. Blagojevich, even though she did no work to earn it. He later hired her at a salary of $12,000 a month plus another $40,000 fee, the indictment said.
As part of the racketeering conspiracy, authorities charged that Mr. Blagojevich permitted Christopher Kelly, Mr. Blagojevich's campaign fund chairman in 2004 and 2005, and Mr. Rezko to influence state boards and commissions to enrich themselves and their associates. In return, the pair generated millions of dollars for Mr. Blagojevich's campaign and his family.
The indictment accused Mr. Blagojevich of lying to FBI agents who were investigating his activities during an interview in March 2005. Mr. Blagojevich said at the time he kept politics and state business separate, and purportedly told agents he didn't track, and didn't want to know, who contributed to his campaigns or how much they gave.
John Harris, another of the governor's former chiefs of staff, was charged with one count of wire fraud. He has agreed to cooperate with prosecutors in the case, according to the indictment.
The counts against Mr. Blagojevich carry maximum prison terms of five to 20 years each and fines as much as $250,000.
Michael Ettinger, the attorney for Rob Blagojevich, said his client is innocent. "We can't wait to go to trial," Mr. Ettinger said. "Let's go."
The indictment seeks the forfeiture of all money and assets held at four banks in the name of Mr. Blagojevich's campaign fund, Friends of Blagojevich. At the end of last year that fund contained $2.7 million. Authorities are also seeking $188,370 from the former governor as proceeds of the alleged fraud and racketeering.
The indictment comes at a critical juncture for Chicago. Members of the International Olympic Committee are touring the city this week to appraise the city's bid for the 2016 summer Olympics. Meanwhile, in Springfield, state lawmakers are debating measures that would cap campaign donations, limit lobbyists donations and make government more transparent.
Mr. Blagojevich first ran for governor in 2002 when he was in his third term representing Chicago's north side in the U.S. House of Representatives. He swept into office on a platform of "reform and renewal" as his predecessor, George Ryan, was implicated on racketeering charges that led to a 6 ½ year prison sentence. Mr. Blagojevich won a second term in 2006, even as Mr. Fitzgerald's investigation was well under way.
Patrick Collins, a former U.S. attorney who helped prosecute Mr. Ryan and is now chairing the Illinois Reform Commission aimed at curbing corruption in state politics, said he was "stunned at the breadth" of the indictment. "The notion that at the same time George Ryan was being investigated the very next governor was taking it up a notch in pay to play is pretty appalling even by Illinois standards," Mr. Collins said.
After his arrest, Mr. Blagojevich limited his public statements to a few encounters outside his home as he left to go jogging, at times quoting Elvis Pressley, a favorite singer. As the weeks wore on, he held a series of press conferences in which he quoted from British poets and brought in people who he said had benefited from his policies.
In January, a month after his arrest, Mr. Blagojevich was impeached by the Illinois House of Representatives by a vote of 114 to 1. He was then tried by the Illinois Senate, but instead of defending himself, he flew to New York and proclaimed his innocence in TV appearances.
On Jan. 29, as the Senate prepared to vote on his removal, Mr. Blagojevich made a 50-minute plea to legislators, saying, "I have done absolutely nothing wrong." Senators voted 59-0 to remove him from office.
After his arrest, Mr. Blagojevich appointed Roland Burris to the vacant Senate seat, despite calls from his party not to make any selection. Mr. Burris later acknowledged he had tried to raise campaign money for Mr. Blagojevich while the governor was deciding whom to appoint. Mr. Burris has denied any wrongdoing.
Since his removal from office, Mr. Blagojevich has filled in as a radio talk show host.
Write to Douglas Belkin at doug.belkin@wsj.com and David Kesmodel at david.kesmodel@wsj.com
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